How to Improve Background Checks in the Wake of Virginia Tech

Rep. Carolyn McCarthy: How to Improve Background Checks in the Wake of Virginia Tech - Politics on The Huffington Post: "In the wake of the Virginia Tech tragedy, flaws in the current National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) were exposed. The shooter was barred under federal regulations from purchasing a firearm. Unfortunately, a lapse in maintaining the mental health records allowed him to slip through the cracks and purchase two handguns.

While the horrible tragedy at Virginia Tech shed light on the failings of the current system in regards to those mentally adjudicated, we must remember that tens of thousands of convicted felons also slip through the cracks of our deeply flawed background check system each year.

Millions of criminal records are not accessible by NICS and millions others are missing critical data, such as arrest dispositions, due to data backlogs. The primary cause of delay in NICS background checks is due to funding and technology issues in the states. Many states have not automated the records concerning mental illness, restraining orders, or misdemeanor convictions for domestic violence. Simply, put, the NICS system must be updated on both the state and federal level."